Convicts
by Stage and ToT
Summary: Sparkles' nightmares are keeping her awake all night, ToT's jealous boyfriend comes back from the dead, and Stage's previous employment comes between her and Specs. *C'mooooooon...humor us! REVIEW!*
1. The Grocery Store That Starts With A 'J'

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Newsies.  **

**Opening Comments: Here we are!  The sequel to "Immigrants"!**

**Title: Convicts**

**Authors: Stage and ToT **

****

ToT tore into the bunkroom, slamming the door behind her.  Breathing hard, she held it shut for a few moments before turning around.  ToT face-faulted when she saw the numerous newsies watching her with interest.  She cleared her throat, fixed her hair and newsie cap, straightened her clothes, and casually strolled over to the bunk that Spot was sitting on.

"Hiya boys." ToT greeted them as though she had not ran through the door.

"Where's your oddah half?" Spot asked.

"Sitting on the bed."

"Cute." Specs said, leaning down from the bunk above them.  ToT jumped.  "Where's Stage?"

"Oh, don't worry about her…she's in j—uh…that place…that store that starts with the 'J'.  The grocery store!  Oh, what am I thinking?  That doesn't start with a 'J'." ToT forced a smile and tried to ignore their doubtful looks.  "She'll be back soon."

Thankfully, as if on cue, Stage walked through the door a second after ToT's declaration.  She walked over to the bed where the other three were.

"Where's da groceries?" Spot asked.

Stage blinked.  "What d'you need groceries for?  Doesn't Kloppman do that?"

"The groceries, Stage!  THE GROCERIES!  You know!  The ones that you went to the store that starts with a 'J' that's called the grocery store?"

"OH!" Stage's face showed understanding.  "Right!  The groceries.  Uh, I was robbed."

"By who?" Specs asked.

"Uhm…I didn't catch his name."

"You don't ask somebody's name when you're being robbed!" ToT laughed, quite forcedly.  "Not that I would _know_!  I mean, come on!"

"We'd never rob people!"

"What kind of job is that?"

"Uh, um…Guess who I saw at the grocery store?!" 

"Who?  Do tell!"

"Sparkles!"

"Really!  I haven't seen her since…the last time we were at the grocery store…in Santa Fe!"

"Youse was in Santa Fe?" Spot asked slowly.

"Oh, yeah!  Grocery shopping!"

"But you two hate shoppin'." Specs pointed out.

"Oh no!  Grocery shopping's fun! Better!"

"Oh, yeah.  You can…um, uh—" Stage scrambled to assemble a sentence in her head.

"Check out the produce!" ToT saved.  "Yeah, its always fresh!"

"But you have to be careful about which ones you pick, because some are rotten."

"And others are dangerous…diseased, you know."

"Then there's the ones that are just dirty."

"They fell on the floor."

"Yeah."

"So…what about Sparkles?"

"Why don't we go find her?"

"Sounds good!  See ya later boys!" ToT exclaimed, seizing Stage by her arm and yanking.

"OW!"

"What?  What I'd do?!"

"I, uh…scraped myself." Stage told her, looking at Spot and Specs.  "On the guy who robbed me's knife…"

"Let me see dat." Specs said, hopping down from the bunk.

"NO!" Stage exclaimed, jumping back and holding her arm protectively against her stomach.  "It's uh…its fine!" 

She grabbed ToT's arm and ripped a strip of fabric off the sleeve.

"Yes, you can use my shirt.  Go right ahead!" ToT said.  "Shirt for all."

"Really?" Spot raised an eyebrow.

"See?  Its all nice and wrapped up.  Aaalll taken care of!  Nice and clean!  Look, it isn't even bleeding through the bandage!"

"Alright, come on!" ToT took Stage by her "good" arm and pulled her from the room.  "You just dug yourself into a deeper hole, Stage." She hissed as they left the room.

"What was I supposed to say?!"

"Anything but what you did."

"This is what happens when you plan without me!"

"You got taken to jail!  What the hell was I supposed to do?"

"Come after me."

"Yeah, right.  You don't need my help to get out of that place."

"True."

"Where's Sparkles?"

"Cell 12 in block A."

****

Specs stared at the door where the over-bubbly immigrants had disappeared through.  He blinked rapidly several times and pointed at the door.  Specs looked over at Spot who was equally as puzzled.

"Was dat…was dat who I _t'ought_ it was?" He asked, carefully.

"Which one?"

****

**Closing Comments:** Don't let the first chapter fool you, this *will* be angst.  The plot line just has to pick up…in about the third or fourth chapter, I think.


	2. Not Just A Walk In The Park

**Shout Outs~**

**Silver Sapphire: Thanks!  We can't wait to see what we have planned either!  XD**

**Rae Kelly: Good thing, right?  ^^**

**Dreamcoat: There'll be humor in there.  It's just not enough to be a main genre.**

**Bluehag: ::blinks:: Make idle threats?  And that's different from what you usually do, how…?**

**Ann: Yeah, I did get it.  *_* I ran around for a week going "Mark David has a *pretty* voice!" quite randomly.  It does seem to be following the GotP formula, huh?  _::stabs::_ NO SLASH!**

**Vinyl: ^_^ Aw, thanks.  You make us feel all warm and fluffly…**

**Bam: Patience child, patience.**

****

"There's her window." ToT pointed at the southernmost window, third from the left.  "So what's the plan, Stage?"

"You distract whoever starts coming around here and I'll get her out."

"And how do you propose we do that?"

"Why not tell them about groceries?  You seemed to enjoy that."

"What else was I supposed to do?"

"Nevermind.  This is neither the time nor the place for bickering."

"Great.  A distraction." ToT walked around the side of the building and waited.  Stage pulled a small metal mallet from her pocket and walked up to the wall.  She peered in through the bars and grinned when she saw the girl she was looking for.

"Sparks.  Wake up!" Stage called through the bars.  The girl sitting on the bed looked up in surprise.

"Stage!  What are you doing in this end of the country?"

"Selling newspapers.  We'll talk later." Stage replied.  She held the mallet up to the middle bar and struck it.  A clear note rang through the air.  "Ah, perfect F#."

"Forget the notes, get me out of here!"

"Fine, fine.  No appreciation for the arts." Stage grumbled, disappearing from view.  She popped back up a minute later.  "Stand back."

Sparkles obediently stood against the opposite wall and Stage raised a giant hammer and swung.  The bars were knocked clean out of their holdings and Sparkles made her way to the window quickly.  Stage pulled her out through the narrow space.

"It's a good thing you didn't grow any." She commented, looking down at her friend.  "Come on, ToT's 'round the next corner."

****

After they had picked up ToT, the three took an intricate route back to the Lodging House, leaving behind fake trails.  The three scrambled inside the bunkroom and faced the newsies inside who had since doubled in amount.

"Heya fellas!" ToT greeted them.  "How are y'all doing?"

"Is she…being friendly…?" Jack mumbled out the corner of his mouth to David.

"We're back from the grocery store!" Stage exclaimed.

"Grocery store?" Sparkles mumbled.

"The grocery store…that starts with the 'J'." 

"Educated, aren't we?" David muttered, rolling his eyes.

"If you insist, its Jim's Grocery Store!  Therefore it does start with a 'J'!" ToT nodded furiously.

"We have a Jim's Grocery Store?" Itey asked.

"Yeah, so…yeah." ToT's vocabulary wasn't at it's best.

"We are so dead," Sparkles muttered. Unfortunately, it didn't escape Jack's ears.

"Why are youse so dead?" he asked.

"Cause Jim's Grocery Store has rotten produce," Stage piped up.

Silence.

"So, ah, how 'bout a walk?" Jack asked, eyeing Sparkles.

"Sounds good!" all the girls yelled unanimously. They each grabbed an arm, desperate to get out of the room.

"Um…" Snoddy looked down at Stage who had, somehow, mistaken his arm for Specs'.

"Ise didn' t'ink youse was in ta me," Dutchy grinned, looking down at ToT.

"Hello, I's don't t'ink we's met." Specs commented, looking down at the blonde the dwarf who had latched onto the closet arm--which happened to be Specs'.

"Stage, wanna trade?" Sparkles called, leaning over so she could look past Specs.  Stage was rather--erm--_distracted by Snoddy._

"Hey…I never noticed _you around…" Stage grinned.  Snoddy looked considerably nervous._

"Snoddy…" Specs began.

"No!  No!  It aint my fault!  She latched onto me!" Snoddy exclaimed, waving his hands in a "I surrender" manner.

"Sparkles, I don't think you want that one." ToT told her friend.

"I don't think so either." Sparkles replied.  She then pointed at Jack.  "I want that one!"

"And you are…six?" Jack guessed.  Sparkles glared.

"Add a ten."

Jack began to count on his fingers and was promptly told the answer by Crutchy. 

"Stage, come on." Specs said, tapping her on the shoulder.  "Everyone else's leavin'."

"Yeah, later, Billy." Stage made a vague motion with her hand.  Specs raised an eyebrow at Snoddy who paled, then blushed bright red.  Specs glanced over his shoulder for some help in the matter, but didn't see much hope of some.  ToT had found her Spot and Sparkles was latched to Jack's wrist.  Surprisingly--or not, depending on how you look at it--Jack wasn't objecting in the least.

"Anyone?" Specs asked.  ToT hopped off the bunk and strolled over.

"What's she doing?"

"Dat." He said simply, nodding towards Stage.  ToT glanced at her and gave an aggravated sigh.

"She promised not to do this again."

"Do what?"

"That." ToT walked up behind Stage and covered her eyes.

"Hey!" She exclaimed.  ToT turned Stage around so that she was facing Specs.  ToT took away her hands and backed up.  Stage blinked several times, trying to adjust her eyes to the light.  She squinted and then brightened.

"Specs!" Stage exclaimed--again--and glomped onto him.  Specs looked a little surprised at the attack and staggered.

"Okay!  Walk time!" ToT yanked Sparkles away from Jack and he trotted after her.  Spot guided Specs as he couldn't see past Stage.  Once outside, they borrowed a crowbar and pried Stage off.

They continued on their walk, Sparkles and Jack holding hands.  A pair of older women approached them.

"Oh, is she yours?  She's so cute!" They cooed.

"Yes, she _is_ mine." Jack grinned broadly.

"Aw, how old is she?"

"Sixteen." Sparkles retorted, a bit miffed.

"Aww!  She even wants to be older!  How cute!"

"No, seriously.  She's sixteen." Stage answered.  The ladies stared at her and gasped.  She blinked and glanced over her shoulder, then at Specs who shrugged.  "He's not _that ugly…I mean, he's no Snoddy…"_

"HEY!" Specs exclaimed.  "What makes you think they're looking at _me?"_

"Officer!  Officer, help!" The first lady shrieked, waving her hand at an officer.  He rushed over.

"What's the problem, ladies?" He asked.  They pointed at where the guys had formed a wall.  They smiled pleasantly.

"Its them, its them!" Shrieked the second lady.  "Those three who were in the papers on Sunday!"

"Alright, move aside.  There's a trio of dangerous criminals about." The officer looked surprised when he moved Dutchy aside and the boy was promptly pulled back to his original position.  "Stand back, son."

"I ain't your son."

"Just get out of my way."

"Just playing--" _cough.  "Ahem, 'scuse me.  Just playin' a little game of hide and go seek officer.  I'm afraid we might have frightened these poor ladies." ToT replied--after standing up--in her lowest voice that she could muster.  He hair was stuffed up underneath her hat and the brim pulled down low.  Sparkles and Stage had followed her example._

"Well…all seems to be in order." The officer said warily.

"Goodbye, sir." Sparkles said, turning and following the rest of them as they walked.  Unfortunately, the brim of her hat greatly impaired her vision and she walked right into Jack's back.  Her newsie hat fell off and her hair fell down.  The officer immediately brought the whistle to his lips and blew.

"RUN FOR IT!" ToT yelled, grabbing the nearest arm and yanking.  She ducked into the alley to the right, Stage bolted down the street, Sparkles dove through the officer's legs, and the boys randomly followed.

****


	3. Anything But Normal Figures

**Rae: _::pets::_ Don't worry about it.  We have blonde moments all the time and we're brunettes XD**

**Sparkles: _::pets::_ Of course not, m'dear.**

**Bluehag: Because…I think we said that they didn't sell papers on that day.  'Cause it was Sunday or something.  XD;  Don't remember.  Erm.  Giant mallets are more powerful than you think.  Snoddy's pretty and old women think of Stage and ToT disgraceful.  'Specially Stage.  ^^; And thanks.**

**Ann: ^^;;  Sorry…?  Yes.  Those two are hot~…I just wish I knew what they look like now.  Anyone care to help us with recent pictures of the minor characters?  We'll luffle you forever.**

**Vinyl: Yeah.  Womanizer.  _::thwaps Jack::_  So, yeah.  ^^;  Oh.  Stage meant "epilogue" in her review for TBJJ.**

**Dreamcoat: ^_^ Thanks_.  ::glomplatchtackle:: _We luffle _you_, 'cause you've stuck with us so long.  Same with ol' Blue.**

**OC: WOO!  It looks as though this'll have more reviews than "Immigrants"!  _::hugs reviewers::_ We looooove youuuuu~!  Let's have this one hit the big ol' 100 mark!  Please?   _::hinthintnodnodwinkwinknudgenudge::_ **

****

Sparkles ran as fast as she could down the street, grabbing the corner of the wall as she turned the corner.  Specs scrambled around, right behind with Jack close on his tail.  She ducked into an alleyway, taking a flying leap of the fence.

Further down, ToT was doing almost the same—only with more control.  Behind her, Spot wondered how she vaulted over the fences with such ease as he fumbled over them.  He didn't think much of it as Bumblits was also having almost no problem making it over the fences.

Farthest down was Stage.  She and Dutchy had taken the streets.  Dutchy was ahead by a few yards as he turned the next corner.  Hearing a crash, Stage skidded around the corner; looking over her shoulder.

"They're right behind us, they're right behind us!" She exclaimed, whirling around.  First, Stage's eyes fell on the pile of limbs that was Dutchy trying to help up a girl she didn't recognize.  Moving her gaze upwards, she spotted another officer.  "They're all around us!"

The three moved backwards as the Bulls closed in all around them.  Their backs hit the wall and their eyes darted around wildly for an escape.

"There's no escape…" The new girl whispered.  

"The fire escape!" Stage exclaimed, jumping on Dutchy and using him as a makeshift ladder.  

"Stage!  Whadd'ya doin'?!" 

"Hold still!" Stage answered, propelling herself forward and off his shoulders.  Dutchy fell forward and Stage barely reached the platform.  "Get the girl up!  Come on, let's go!  It's easy!"

"Maybe foir youse!" Dutchy grumbled, scooping the girl up into his arms and throwing her up.  Stage grabbed her wrist and dragged her up.  The Bulls were closing in around Dutchy and he didn't have a boost to get up onto the landing.  He spun around wildly.

"Uh…your shoe's untied, mistah." Dutchy said, pointing down at the officer's said shoe.  Surprisingly, he fell for it and looked down.  Dutchy jumped on his back, then made a frantic leap towards his "escape".  Stage and the new girl each grabbed him and helped him up.  

"Da oldest trick in da book an' 'e fell for it." Dutchy laughed in relief.

The now trio clambered up the fire escape and onto the roof.  They looked around, breathing hard from the adrenaline rush and the run.  

"Where do we go now?" The girl asked.

"This way." Stage replied, jogging over to the opposite edge of the building.  She peered over and then signaled for the others.  "We'll jump."

"Jump?  Are you nuts?!"

"Basically." Dutchy filled in.

"I'll go first.  Just watch…you'll pick it up in no time at all." 

"Pick what up?"  

"Seems more loike fallin' down ta me." 

Stage said nothing and jumped.  Dutchy and the girl watched in disbelief and horror as she fell.  Hearing a few crashes from the other end, Dutchy laughed when he saw Jack run by with Sparkles in his arms and then Specs right behind, pushing along the older newsie.  He looked a bit surprised—to say the least—when Stage landed in his outstretched arms.  But that didn't stop Specs from running…stumbling a bit, that is.

"She's _insane." The girl stated, firmly.  As though he hadn't heard her, Dutchy again picked her up and walked to the edge._

"Ready?  Here we go!" He said, jumping.  The girl shrieked and shut her eyes.  There was a soft landing and she cracked an eye.  

"What…happened?"

"We's dead and in heaven.  As youse can see, dey loike laundry heah." Dutchy replied.  "Woulda be so kinda as to get awff me lap?  We's gonna be left behind oddahwise."

She obediently crawled off and got out of the gigantic pile of dirty laundry.  Dutchy was soon to follow and they ran off in the direction of the Lodging House.

****

ToT came bolting out the alleyway and crashed headlong into someone's stomach.  Whoever it was doubled over and dropped a heavy weight on her.   ToT found herself trapped underneath two bodies, face down on the cobblestone.

"Jack!"

"I's sorry, Sparkles."

"If you both don't get off me, _right now…" ToT trailed off.  The weight on her back was lifted and she got to her feet.  Behind her, Spot and Bumblits had completely missed the dog pile with Jack and Sparkles._

"So where are we now?" Sparkles asked, looking around at the buildings.  Her eyes fell on Specs and Stage and she blinked rapidly.  "Um, hi, Stage…where'd you come from?"

"The sky." She chirped.

"Where's the Lodging House?" ToT asked, looking around as well.  "There it is!"

The seven walked towards their home, breathing hard and holding the stitches in their sides.  As they entered the doors, Stage, ToT, and Sparkles stopped the guys and put fingers to their lips to indicate silence.  Quietly, they peeked around a corner to see the chief of police talking with Kloppman…and not another newsie was in sight.

"What were those names again, officer?" Kloppman asked, seeing the seven out of the corner of his eyes.

"Veronique Englhart, Sandra Strauss, and Sylvia Vecchi."

"I see."

"You must keep your eyes open for them, Mister Kloppman.  These three are fugitives and potentially dangerous.  One of them disappeared up this fire escape with two others.  We suspect them to be accomplices.  They were also seen with five others whom we suspect to be newsies." 

Stage's hand went over her mouth and she looked over at Sparkles and ToT with a worried expression.  Sparkles mirrored her look and ToT just glared at the officer's back.

"Ask your boys if they've seen them.  They're charged with resisting arrest, smuggling, and manslaughter." 

"I'll do that officer, have a nice night."

The officer walked out, but not before the other newsies had a chance to duck back into the alleyway shadows.  Once his footsteps had faded, the seven came into the main room just as the other newsies--who had been hiding upstairs--came down.  Kloppman looked expectantly at the three girls.

"I don't normally ask questions, but this is anything but normal." He stated.  ToT, Stage, and Sparkles exchanged glances and each sighed.

"Roll 'em up." Stage said in defeat.

"I'm not doing it." ToT insisted.

"If she doesn't do it, I sure as hell won't." Sparkles added.  Stage frowned.

"What if _I go first?"_

"They'll all find out anyway."

"So why not now?" Sparkles asked, switching back and forth.

"We'll be able to roll up our sleeves when it gets hot." Stage tried.

"Not in public." ToT shot down the idea.  "But if _you go first, then __maybe I'll go."_

Stage glared in the direction of her friends as she rolled up her right sleeve a bit awkwardly.  Once it was at her elbow, she turned up the underside of her arm.  Upon the pale skin was printed "16005" in black, blocky letters.  ToT also rolled up hers and the number was "16705".  Sparkles was the last to follow the action, with "15205" reading across her forearm.

"Sylvia Vecchi: resisting arrest and manslaughter." Stage spoke first, shattering the dead silence.

"Veronique Englhart: resisting arrest, smuggling, and murder of an officer." ToT said next.

"Sandra Strauss: also resisting arrest, smuggling, and traitorism." Sparkles concluded.

"We're convicts." All three agreed.

****


	4. A Slipped Confession

**Vinyl: *sigh*  XD Dontcha just looove the word 'intrigued'.  And don't worry about the shout outs.**

**Ann: XD _::dies::_ Wait 'till—well, you'll see.**

**Dreamcoat: ^^ Thanks.**

**Bam: ^_^ Yay!******

**SilverSapphire: Here's your update…**

****

The silence was deafening as the entire Lodging House looked upon the trio with new thoughts.  Stage blushed red under their gaze, ToT glared, and Sparkles kept glancing around.  Finally, the blonde was sick of it.

"Stop looking at me!" Sparkles exclaimed, flailing her arms.  The newsies all jumped at her outburst and a few ducked.  

"Ya'know, it's kinda hard once ya'll tell us dat youse been lyin' ta us 'bout who youse were and just tellin' us now dat youse killed some people." Jack stated.  Murmurs of agreement drifted through the crowd.

"We didn't lie." Stage answered, her arms crossed.  "You just didn't ask."

"And we had good reasons for what we did." ToT added.  "Good reason for the people that we killed." She stopped when she caught sight of Stage's expression.  "Er, the people that me and Sparkles killed, anyway."

"You just said dat youse killed somebody, Stage." Mush spoke up.  Stage rolled her eyes with a sigh. 

"I was _convicted of it…but that doesn't necessarily mean that I actually committed the act.  The law isn't always right, you know." She replied.  "I was framed.  Set up, double-crossed, conspired against.  'Staged', if you will.  An 'associate' of my father's was on the side of his worst enemy.  They murdered my family and I got there just in time to be blamed for everything.  Drug wars work that way."_

"I was kinda set up…not so much as Stage." ToT remarked.  "Basically, my 'boyfriend'—Darius Cuthbert—tipped off the police of my smuggling operation.  He was involved, but got out scot-free.  I snuck gold in, in bars of chocolate.  After an officer died by my own hand, I fled here.  I was caught in Virginia and shipped cross-country to the Santa Fe penitentiary.  My name's an acronym of 'Thief of Tubingen'."

"I'm from Switzerland," Sparkles started hers off.  "I smuggled jewels in, hence the name 'Sparkles'.  I murdered the mayor of the small town after he found out the truth about my 'charity donations'.  I'm charged with manslaughter as well.  I met these two in the Santa Fe jail…they met on the boat ride over."

"Oh that was ever so fun." ToT grumbled.

"Ducking down at every person that passed our way." Stage added.

"So…they're still looking for you?" Bumblits asked, raising his eyebrows up his forehead.  Dottie had managed to slip out, unnoticed, from the Lodging House.  Dutchy—who had been sitting next to her on the step—was asleep, his head resting on the wall.

"Guess so.  'Course Sparkles had to go and get herself caught…and Stage after that." ToT noted.  "So now your numbers are even more apparent."

"I escaped, didn't I?" Stage muttered.

"Doesn't account for anything."

"Shut up."

"You shut up."

"I said it first."

"That doesn't matter."

"Yes it does!"

"No it doesn't!"

"Does so!"

"Does not!"

"Does so!"

"Does not!"

"I'll soak ya!" Stage yelled, pulling a switchblade.  The entire bunkroom—aside from Sparkles, Dutchy, and ToT—jumped backwards at the flash of metal.  She advanced on ToT with smoldering eyes.  ToT pulled out a gun.

"Goils…goils…" Jack began nervously, trying to stop bloodshed before it began.  ToT and Stage both whirled and glared.

"Shut _up_, Cowboy!" They yelled.  Jack shrank backwards with a meek squeak of sorts.  Spot leapt forward while ToT was distracted and wrenched the gun from her grip.  Specs had also gone into action, restraining Stage from making any attacks.  ToT shrieked and made a grab for it.

"He-ey, that's my guuun!" She whined.

Spot faltered.  "What is _with_ you two?"

"PMS." Sparkles replied without hesitation.

"No, that was last week." Stage answered with a sigh.  "That's why I kept bursting out in tears."

"I had mine awhile ago." ToT said, dismissing the subject.  

"What is that saying?" Sparkles asked, wriggling her eyebrows.

"No!  I have morals, ya'know!"

"Oh, what?  And I don't?!" Stage demanded, annoyed.  There was a deadly silence in which everyone stared at her, mouths open in shock at what she had just said.  Stage blushed bright red and covered her mouth with a hand.

"Stage…" ToT began carefully.

"Specs…" Spot said in the same tone.

"No!" Specs waved his hands in a 'time out' motion.  "Not me!"

"Then who…?"

"Stage…youse a voigon, ain't ya?" Snoddy asked, breaking the confused silence.  Stage, still turning redder with each passing moment, cleared her throat and made an attempt to answer the question before her.

"…No."

****


	5. The Truth Hurts Everyone...Just Some Mor...

**Shout Outs~**

**Vinyl: _::pets::_ Here you are.**

**Willow: *sigh* With ToT…it's just best to *not ask*.**

**Dreamcoat: Thanks.**

**Ann: ^^;; Those fights are always great, no?  I usually sulk during that particular time.**

**Stress: *blinks* … 'Lucky'?  I don't know about *that*.  XD;  **

**…ToT: *blinks*  A shout out to someone who's supposed to be writing the shout outs.  XD  I think your review got cut off, m'dear.  It's rather abrupt. **

**Notes:**  Erm, when ToT was reading over this…she saw that instead of "closest arm", we wrote "Closet arm".  O.o  We apologize for that…Specs and his sexy closet arm.  XD

****

Specs spun Stage around, putting his hands on her shoulders.  "Dis ain't true.  It just can't be.  Tell me it ain't true, Stage."

"It…its true." Stage mumbled, not being able to meet his gaze.  In shock, Specs dropped his arms back to his sides and the silence fell again.  Stage hazarded a gaze up and staggered backwards.  She reached shaking fingers up to touch the red mark on her cheek.  "Specs…"

"You lying whore…" He snapped.  "You were just using me?!"

"No, I—"

"I ain't hearin' dis!"

"Specs—"

"I can't take dis now!  Dis is ridiculous!" Specs turned and stormed over to the window.  He climbed out of it and clambered down the fire escape without a backwards look.  Stage let out a choked sob and her knees gave out from under her.  ToT and Sparkles helped her to her designated bunk and then sat on their own.  Well, Sparkles sat on ToT's, not having one just yet.

"Good thing we don't have that apartment anymore." ToT commented.  "It would be near impossible to get her back without being seen."

"Look, I's got ta get back ta Brooklyn befoir dey send out a search party." Spot said, tossing the gun on the bedside beside ToT.  She tucked it back into wherever she had pulled it from in the first place and nodded.  "I'll be back tamarrah mornin'."

"Seeya, Spot."

"Bye Spot."

"Take care."

The leader of Brooklyn nodded to everyone before taking the fire escape route.  The only sound in the bunkroom were the sound of boots on the fire escape and Stage crying into her pillow.  

"Well, dere ain't nothin' else we can do tanight." Skittery commented.  "Lets toirn in."

****

Sparkles sighed deeply as she pried the tops off the boxes with her crowbar.  Sticking the metal item back in her belt loop, she pulled on a pair of thin cloth gloves.  Sparkles leaned over the edge of the box and reached in, pulling out a handful of it's contents.  She grinned when she saw the glint off the precious gems in her palm.

_"Whatcha got there, Sparkles?" ToT asked, walking up next to her friend.  Sparkles showed her and ToT seemed unimpressed._

_"Oh.  Only those pieces of glass again.  Why don't you stop wasting your time with those and join up with my business?"_

_"This is a good job for me, ToT.  I know my way around and what I'm doing.  I'm comfortable with it."_

_"Knowing your way around doesn't always make it comfortable." Stage commented, leaning on the edge of the box across from them.  "It just means you've been doing it long enough that you can pretty much guess the results."_

_"And the results aren't always pretty." Growled a voice.  A gunshot pierced through the air and Stage staggered, staring down at where a patch of red was growing on her chest.  She fell a moment later and ToT and Sparkles whirled around._

_ToT was the next to fall, a crushing blow to the side of her skull.  Sparkles looked around wildly, trying to find the murderer of her friends.  She fumbled and yanked out the crowbar, holding it up in a defensive position._

_"Who're you?!"_

_A chuckle._

_"Show yourself!"_

_Sparkles ducked as a knife whizzed over her head.  She stabbed blindly and yanked at the cool metal when it became lodged in something.  Sparkles tried to pull her hands away when warm liquid spilled over her arms, but they seemed to be welded against the metal.  She slipped and fell, hitting the ground hard on her hip._

_"No, no, no!  Help!  Somebody help!  He's going to kill me!  HELP!"_

"Sparkles, SPARKLES!  Wake up!" Jack shook the blonde furiously, trying to tear her subconscious away from the nightmare she was having.

"NO!  Stay back, you bastard!" She shrieked, jerking away from him and falling from the bunk.  Sparkles awoke when her head came into contact with the wooden floor.  Breathing hard and shaking, she sat up and examined her arms.  Satisfied, Sparkles pulled herself up by the sheets on her bed and back onto the mattress.  She gasped and jerked away when arms went around her.

"Shh, shh.  It's just me." Jack whispered.  Sparkles let out the breath that she had been holding and leaned against him.  "Its okay, it was just a nightmare.  It ain't real.  Just a figment of your imagination."

"What's goin' on?" ToT's voice asked groggily from beside Sparkles.  The two had to share a bunk temporarily since there hadn't been a free one available that night.

"Nothin'.  Go back ta sleep, ToT."

"Already done." She mumbled.

"What was your dream, Sparkles?" Jack whispered, so not to wake anybody else.

"There was blood.  Everywhere.  He killed them."

"Who?"

"Stage and ToT.  They didn't even see it coming…like shooting fish in a barrel for him…it was so easy."

"What?"

"He killed them both.  He shot Stage and hit ToT with a lead pipe.  Then he came after me.  All I had was the crowbar.  I didn't mean to kill him…he just ran into it.  My hands kept sliding over the surface when I tried to pull it out.  It was everywhere.  I slipped and fell down the stairs because of it.  He came to get me…"

"Who?  Who, Sparkles?  Who came to get you?"

"My father."

****


	6. An Overlooked Truth

**Shout Outs~**

**Ann: Thank you for the review…and of *course* things'll be patched up—this is us!**

**Vinyl: o.O; Enthusiastic.  Thanks for reviewing.**

_::THROWS ROTTEN FRUIT AT OTHERS::_

**REVIEW NOW!**

****

Specs trudged down the dimly-lit street, his hands crammed down in his pockets.  His head was bowed and his lips bent down in a grimace.  Unwittingly, Specs had made his way to the side of this foul town that he was from.  Prostitutes whistled and beckoned to him as he walked by.  But he kept his head down and walked.

Specs hated it.  He absolutely loathed anything to do with women selling themselves on the street corner.  It was disgusting, immoral, degrading, and so on.  How could people just overlook that?  There _was_ a reason that there were so many orphans in this city.  Illegitimate children whose mothers were whores who couldn't take proper care of a child—in the unlikely event that they wanted it—and whose fathers sought after anything but living proof of the sin that they had committed. 

There were so many of the children begging and struggling to make their own sort of living at ages as young as five.  The little girls, if they were attractive enough, took after their mothers in the business.  Also at devastatingly young ages.  These kids, they had no where to turn, no one to turn to. 

Specs should know…since he was one.

****

It was the next morning when Specs found himself at the Distribution Office gates, walking back into the crowd of the Manhattan newsies.  He weaved his way through and came up next to Dutchy.  Specs tapped him on the shoulder.

"Specs!  Where ya been?  Geez, you look loike you ain't even slept none." Dutchy exclaimed.  He grabbed Specs' arm and pulled him closer.  "Ehy, d'you know dat Stage's been cryin' all noight?  She couldn't even roll outta bed dis mornin'.  And Specs, ya should see how red Stage's eyes are.  I didn't t'ink dey could toirn dat kinda colah."

"What is she crying for?" Specs hissed.  Dutchy looked taken aback.

"You don't care?" asked a female voice.

Specs spun to face the girl.  "Who're you?"

"Oh, dis is Dottie, Specs." Dutchy filled in.  "We ran inta hoir last noight…"

"Why should I care 'bout Stage?"

" 'Cause she's your goil!"

"She ain't me goil."

"Whadd'ya talkin' 'bout?  You love hoir!  You told me dat last week!"

"Maybe dat was befoir I found out what a whore she really is undaneath all dat supahficial stuff."

"That doesn't change love." Dottie retorted in a hiss.

"It changes everyt'ing!"

"Not if ya love hoir!"

"I don't!"

"Specs—"

"Drop it, Dutchy." Specs snapped, moving ahead in the line to get his papers.  Dutchy frowned deeply at his back…this wasn't good.  He glanced over at Dottie who looked just as upset.  This wasn't good at all.

****

"You guys shouldn't be staying here." Stage mumbled, not facing her friends.

"We aren't leaving you here to kill yourself, Sylvia." ToT replied.  The three friends never used each others' real names unless they were dead serious about whatever it was they were talking about.

"I won't kill myself."

"Bullshit."

"You need to pay your rent for tonight."

"Kloppman said he'd let us slide for the night." Sparkles piped up.

"Why does he hate me?" Stage asked to no one in particular.  "Is it really that bad?"

"Kloppman doesn't hate you." Sparkles said slowly.

"I think she may mean Specs." ToT told her.

"He doesn't hate you.  It's probably…just a shock."

"He'll be back any minute now.  Just you wait."

"He called me a whore." Stage mumbled again.

"That's what you were, isn't it?" ToT blinked.  Sparkles elbowed her sharply and sent a warning look in her direction.  "I mean…um…"

"Forget it." Stage cut her off, pulling the blanket over her head.

"I should give that boy a piece of my mind." 

"If you can find him," said Sparkles.

"Shh," ToT hissed, elbowing her short friend. "I'll find him—if I have to search all of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Harlem, Queens...hell!  All of New York!" She turned and strode from the room.  Sparkles blinked at her dramatic exit.  And yawned.

"Jack keep you up late last night, Sparkles?" Stage asked in a bitterly sardonic tone.  " 'Cause you sound pretty tired."

"No…just a dream woke me up.  I had trouble getting back to sleep, that's all."

"Hm."

"I'll be—" _Yawn._ "—Fine."

"…" Stage said nothing.

****

Sparkles opened her eyes and stretched her arms.  She turned over on her side, much happier after her nap.  Sparkles' eyes fell on the bunk across from her, on her right.  It was Stage's bunk… 

…and it was empty.

****

**Stage: **_::beats reviewers with rolled up newspapers::_

**ToT:** *blinks* Why are you doing this to our poor reviewers?

**Stage:** Because they aren't reviewing!

**ToT:** Ooh.  _::gets out gun.::_

**Stage:** o_O; That's not going to help our situation.

**ToT:** _::ponders this::_ Hm.  Guess not. 


	7. Past Becomes Present

**Shout Outs~**

**Sparkles: XD _::pets::_ We're sorry.  X.x;;; Can you believe that it is STILL NOT DONE?!**

**Slick: Ahhh!  Newspaper!  _::hides::_**

**Megan: Probably.**

**Sphinx: o_O Well…the 1st chapter's not angst…**

****

"Stupid, miserable little jerk.  I'll show what it's like to be us.  Who does he think he is, storming out like that and tearing out Stage's heart?  Of course, he had to tromp all over it first!" ToT muttered under her breath as she walked quickly down the street.  Not watching where she was going, she crashed right into somebody else.

"Where's da foire?" Spot asked her.

"I'm looking for Specs.  Seen him?"

"Lately, no."

"Damn it."

"Where's Stage?"

"With Sparkles, back at the bunkhouse."

"Well, dere goes Sparkles…" Spot pointed as a form tore around the corner, running frantically down the street.  "Looks as t'ough she's lost somet'ing."

"Or someone." ToT added.  She seized Spot by the arm and began pulling him along as she sprinted down the street.  "Come on, let's follow her."

The two dashed down the street after the blonde newsie, also finding that she was _much_ faster than they were.  It had to be something to do with the size.  Whatever it was that caused them to be slower, it happened to have 'perfect timing' for another head-on collision.

"Ow!  Why don't you watch where you're going?!" ToT demanded angrily, holding a hand to her bumped head.  She looked up to see who she had collided with and jumped backwards.  "D-Darius…"

"_Hallo_, Veronique." Darius smirked.  "Have you been well?"

"Who da hell are youse?" Spot asked, folding his arms across his chest.  Darius looked down at Spot and laughed.  "What're you laughin' at, ya big oaf?"

"Who is this?  Is this some kind of joke?  Should I feel threatened?"

"I's Brooklyn, ya bum.  Ya should be bendin' down on one knee ta me." Spot answered, drawing himself up to his full height.  ToT held out an arm to hold him back, never taking her eyes from Darius.

"What do you want, Darius?" She asked.

"The bounty on your head, my dear." He answered, still smirking.  "Tsk, tsk, tsk.  Manslaughter, smuggling, and resisting arrest.  You indeed are a lady with appalling behavior, Veronique."

"What about you?  You're charged with five different kinds of abuse, homicide, smuggling, accepting bribes, giving bribes, conning innocent people out of their life savings, black market, drug abuse, selling illegal drugs on the streets, getting _children_ hooked on opium so you could sell more…the list goes on and on.  Do you want me to continue?"

"But that's only in Europe.  And I haven't been caught."

"You will be!"

"What are you going to do?  Go to the police?"

"I could." Spot cut in.

"Don't get involved." ToT hissed.

"Well, it's too late for that, isn't it?  Just because he hangs around you, he's charged with association in criminal acts and is assumed to be your accomplice."

"Spot, get out of here."

"Not on your loife, ToT."

"He'll kill you!"

"I ain't afraid."

"Aw, what a knight in shining armor." Darius sneered.  He pulled a gun from the holster underneath his arm and aimed it at both of them.  "Here's the deal, Veronique.  Either I kill your Brooklyn Baby or you come with me."

****

Stage shuffled down the street, head down, and unsure of where she was going.  Wherever her feet took her was where.  She had just really wanted to get out of that bunkroom where she was being watched as though she might sprout another head at any moment.  Stage sighed as she turned a corner and yelped when a hand grabbed her wrist and jerked her around.  She found herself staring into a pair of eyes she thought she'd never have to look at again. 

"Well, well, well…Sylvia Vecchi.  What're you doing on this side of the world?"  He asked her.  Stage ripped her wrist from his grip and put as much space as possible between them.

"Sylvia Vecchi is dead, Aldo."

"You look pretty alive for a dead person."

"I'm no longer Sylvia Vecchi!  I've started over!"

"Really?"

"Go find yourself some other whore to get your kicks from, I'm out of that business." Stage said in disgust, turning and starting to depart.

"You're never out of that business." He replied, grabbing her by the shoulder.

"Too bad!" Stage snapped.  "Take your hands off me!"

Around the corner, Specs overheard every word of the conversation and guessed that it was probably his cue to intervene.  He turned the corner and pulled Stage back and away from the huge man.  Stage looked surprised to see him but very guilty.

"What's this?  Already taken for the night?"

"For every night." Specs replied, pushing Stage behind him.  "And you bettah back awff if youse knows what good foir ya, mistah."

"If I know what's good for me?" Aldo laughed.  "What're you going to do to me?  Call your mommy?"

"Not even if I had one!" Specs fumed, his face contorted with utmost hatred.

****

"Stupid, stupid, stupid." Sparkles muttered, banging her head against a wall.  "You just had to go to sleep, idiot.  She'll probably jump off the Brooklyn bridge and you'll have no one to blame but yourself.   Well, maybe Specs…"

She stopped her self-abuse and walked away from the wall.  Sparkles made her way towards the bridge and, upon arriving, went to the middle of the bridge and looked down.  She didn't know what she was expecting to find…but hey, it gave her something to do.

"…Sandra?"

Sparkles jumped at the voice and whirled around.  Before her stood a towering—especially towering, considering her size—blonde Swedish man.  She swore under her breath and looked for an escape.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Santa Fe, my dear daughter?"

"Sandra ain't here."

" 'Ain't'?  I believe you had a better upbringing than that.  I didn't spend all that money on education so you could run around Manhattan dirt-poor and saying 'ain't'.  Especially in _boy's_ clothing.  Where is your decency?"

"Where's yours?"

"Whatever could you mean?"

"You have some nerve to come back!"

"I'm your father."

"Some father, you set me up!"

"I did it for your own good."

"Bullshit," Sparkles snapped.  "You had me sent to penitentiaries for 'my own good'?  I can't count the times that I nearly got raped on all of my fingers and toes!"

"A learning experience."

"On how scum-bagish men can be."

"Now, now, Sandra.  Don't be bitter."

"Fuck you."

"Watch your language, young lady."

"I'll do whatever I damn well please!"

"I'll teach you to be insubordinate." He snarled, raising his hand to hit her.

****


	8. Not All Solutions Are Clean Ones

**Opening Comments:  Because Stage keeps forgetting about this fic and updating, she's updating in bulk now.**

****

"Specs…get out of here." Stage said, pulling him back.  Specs shrugged her off and continued to glare at the hulk in front of him.  "You don't know him!  He's one of the most powerful men in Italy."

"Dis ain't Italy, now is it?  Dis heah's New Yawk."

"That doesn't change who he is!"

"I ain't backin' down."

"Specs—"

"You just go."

"What're you?  Nuts?  You can't beat this guy by yourself!  He doesn't fight fair."

"Most people don't."

"This is getting old.  Lets just be done with it!" Aldo exclaimed, grabbing Specs by the collar and dragging him forward.  Specs struggled against the hold, trying to land a blow or escape.  Stage jumped forward, her switchblade out.  Aldo knocked her aside easily and ripped the blade from her grasp.  He pushed Specs away and turned towards Stage.  She groaned and pulled her hand away from where it was pressed against her throbbing head.

"You little bitch," Aldo said, yanking her up.  "Running away from Italy to this place and consorting with these lower-class.  What were you thinking?"

"I have more morals than you do." 

"Then maybe you'll get into heaven." He sneered, holding the point of the switchblade under her chin.  "Give my regards to your family."

"Leave her alone!" Specs yelled, throwing a handful of mud at the back of Aldo's head.  Aldo dropped Stage and turned towards Specs.

"You want to go first, then?" He advanced on the newsie, again grabbed him by the collar, and threw Specs into the brick wall on his right.  He yelled in pain and crumpled to the ground, holding his leg.  "Pathetic."

" 'Least I's more respectable than youse."

"Respect has nothing to do with it." Aldo answered, leaning over to stab Specs.  He fumbled behind him blindly, searching across the cobblestones for a weapon of sorts.  Specs' finger closed around something and he swung out.  Aldo choked and staggered back, the glass bottle lodged in his neck.  He was dead before he hit the ground, the burst blood vessel bleeding profusely.

Specs dropped back against the wall, breathing hard and trying to stop his fingers from shaking.  It was all that adrenaline pumping through his veins and all he could think was, "I just killed someone.  I killed someone."

He leaned over and lost his dinner over the cobblestones.  Stage came over and knelt next to him as Specs continued to retch.  She rubbed his back as he took in shuddering breaths and swallowed hard.

"I just moidahed someone…"

"Come on, we should get out of here." Stage mumbled.  Specs started to get up, gritted his teeth, and gave up.

"Me leg…I t'ink it's broken."

Stage stood up and went over to where there were crates piled in the corner.  She pulled off a board and picked up a scrap of rope.  Stage walked back and—after taking back her switchblade—set the bone straight, tying the board to it.  She helped Specs up and they limped away from the gruesome scene.

****

Sparkles flinched and braced herself for the strike.  She cracked an eyelid when she heard him swear and he let go of her wrist.  Sparkles opened them both when she spotted the knife lodged in his shoulder.  Her gaze flicked to the end of the bridge where Dottie was standing, an identical knife in her hand.  She was poised and ready to send another flying.

"Dottie!" Sparkles exclaimed.  
  


"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Dottie demanded.  "What kind of town is this where men just attack little girls—"

"Hey!"

"—In the streets?!"

"This is New York, sweetie." Sparkles' father sneered. 

"You did _not_ just call me 'sweetie'."

"What are you going to do about it?" He asked, pulling out the knife.  He grabbed Sparkles and yanked her back, holding the dirty blade at her neck.

"I'll kill you."

"If you kill me, you kill her."

"Care to make a bet on that?"

"What's your wager?"

"Your life, for Sparkles'."

"Fair enough."

"Hey!" Sparkles exclaimed.  "You can't just wager my life!"

_Swish._ Sparkles stared, wide-eyed, at the knife protruding from the wrist directly in front of her throat.  Her father staggered back, clutching at the wound.  He soon fell from the blood loss and bled to death.

"I just did." Dottie said, quite calmly.  She walked across the distance separating them and pulled her knives from the dead body.  Taking out her kerchief, she cleaned off the blood as though this happened daily to her.  Sparkles sank to her knees, still wide eyed and shaking.

Dottie glanced over at her, continuing polishing the blade.  Once finished, she threw the piece of cloth over the edge of the bridge.  She walked over to Sparkles' side and offered a hand to help her up.  Sparkles took it and they began walking back towards the Lodging House.

"Have you…ever done that before?" Sparkles asked.

"Nope."

****

"Leave him be.  I'll come." ToT said, sighing deeply and walking over to where Darius was standing.  Spot looked at her like she was crazy.

"ToT…"

"Just go, Spot."

"But—"

"No, get out of here!"

"I ain't leavin' ya wit dis scabbah!" Spot insisted, grabbing ToT's arm.  She yanked it out of his grip.  "ToT!  Ya ain't goin' back!"

"I don't have much of a choice, now do I?" She snapped, shoving Spot away.  "Go on!  Get out of here…you can pick up plenty more girls."

"ToT—"

"This is getting boring.  Looks like I'll have to kill you after all, won't I?" Darius grinned, pulling out a pistol.

"No! You said you'd leave him alone!" ToT yelled, jumping forward.

  Darius laughed maniacally.  "You always were too trusting."  He pointed the gun at Spot whose eyes were still pleading with the girl, cocked it, and started to squeeze the trigger.  Spot stared down the barrel, forcing himself not to close his eyes.  He flinched when the shot was fired.

Feeling no pain, Spot cracked an eyelid.  He opened them both wide when Darius fell at his feet, bleeding from the back of his head.  Spot stared up at ToT who was grimacing at the body and holding a gun in her hand.  In disgust, she spat at the body.

"May you rot in hell, Darius Cuthbert." 

"ToT, how did you…?" Spot asked.  It had been such a short moment between when Darius had almost fired and when ToT had.

ToT smirked.  "Fastest draw in Southern Germany." She replied, spinning the gun and sticking it back into her belt.  "Darius always did forget that I constantly carried a gun on me.  The idiotic bastard."

The couple started back towards "home".  "Did youse really mean dat I could pick up plenty more goils?" 

"Oh, don't tell me you haven't seen the way they look at you." ToT rolled her eyes.  "They practically _drool_ as you walk by."

****


End file.
